Brayden House nearly ready to shelter parents with children in the NICU from some of the costs, travel

Brayden House

The Brayden House, located near downtown Northport on 9th Street, is nearly complete Tuesday, May 6, 2014. The exterior is constructed out of recycled wood including pallets. The house is part of the Brown House Community and named after Brayden Lynn Giambalvo who was born eight weeks premature to parents Josh and Ashley. It will provide housing and meals for parents with babies in the NICU units at Northport Medical Center and DCH Regional Medical Center in Tuscaloosa. The Brayden House will open this summer. Michelle Lepianka Carter | The Tuscaloosa News

Tuscaloosa News

By Lydia Seabol AvantStaff Writer

Published: Tuesday, May 6, 2014 at 2:00 p.m.

Last Modified: Tuesday, May 6, 2014 at 2:26 p.m.

Out-of-town parents with premature babies in the NICU at DCH Regional Medical Center or Northport Medical Center will soon have a temporary place to call home while their child is the hospital.

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Brayden House, located in the Brown House community in Northport, has been under construction for the last two years. It is set to open this summer. It will serve as a temporary, free residence for parents with children in the NICU.

"It's fantastic, that it's finally coming to fruition," said Josh Giambalvo, tco-founder of the Brayden House. "It's been really cool to see if come together, and more exciting to see how many people came to help, from appliance companies and construction companies, people helping paint."

The Northport City Council voted unanimously Monday to waive development fees for the house, which would total around $2,800. The water and sewer lines for the house have yet to be hooked up, and there is landscaping work to be done. But, the house should be completed by July 1, said project manager James Hudson.

The idea for the house came after Giambalvo's premature son, Brayden, died at 28 days old. Giambalvo wanted to do something in his son's memory, and was struck by how many out-of-town parents struggled to be with their children in the NICU because of the cost and distance.

"Some parents we didn't get to meet, because they weren't able to be there because of financial issues or lived 40 minutes away," Giambalvo said.

It's something that Hudson also witnessed when his son was in the NICU at DCH.

"There were babies where we didn't see the parents at all, because they didn't have the resources to stay nearby," Hudson said.

Giambalvo and Hudson were inspired.

"We were talking about things you wanted to do if you got rich, and it came up, ‘Why wait?'" Giambalvo said. "Why not see if we could do it before then? That stemmed into friends jumping in and getting involved to make the process happen."

That led to businesses and community members making donations to help the Brayden House become a reality. The land for the house was donated, and volunteers helped as they could.

Josh Giambalvo and his wife, Ashley, live in the Brown House community where Brayden House is located.

"This is the vision we had, and we wanted to do it and just went for it," said Hudson. "We didn't win the lottery. It's just one of those things we wanted to do to inspire people. If people have a vision for the community, just do it."

Once finished, a host family from the community will move into part of the 4-bedroom, 1,700-square-foot home. Two of the bedrooms, which will have their own entrances, will serve as a temporary residence to two NICU families at a time.

Giambalvo said he's glad something with his son's name will go on and make an impact.

"It's really cool that [the Brayden House] has his name and that people will remember him," Giambalvo said. "But it's also to help people, and serve a need, a need that only people who have been in that situation see."

<p>Out-of-town parents with premature babies in the NICU at DCH Regional Medical Center or Northport Medical Center will soon have a temporary place to call home while their child is the hospital.</p><p>Brayden House, located in the Brown House community in Northport, has been under construction for the last two years. It is set to open this summer. It will serve as a temporary, free residence for parents with children in the NICU.</p><p>"It's fantastic, that it's finally coming to fruition," said Josh Giambalvo, tco-founder of the Brayden House. "It's been really cool to see if come together, and more exciting to see how many people came to help, from appliance companies and construction companies, people helping paint."</p><p>The Northport City Council voted unanimously Monday to waive development fees for the house, which would total around $2,800. The water and sewer lines for the house have yet to be hooked up, and there is landscaping work to be done. But, the house should be completed by July 1, said project manager James Hudson.</p><p>The idea for the house came after Giambalvo's premature son, Brayden, died at 28 days old. Giambalvo wanted to do something in his son's memory, and was struck by how many out-of-town parents struggled to be with their children in the NICU because of the cost and distance.</p><p>"Some parents we didn't get to meet, because they weren't able to be there because of financial issues or lived 40 minutes away," Giambalvo said.</p><p>It's something that Hudson also witnessed when his son was in the NICU at DCH.</p><p>"There were babies where we didn't see the parents at all, because they didn't have the resources to stay nearby," Hudson said.</p><p>Giambalvo and Hudson were inspired.</p><p>"We were talking about things you wanted to do if you got rich, and it came up, 'Why wait?'" Giambalvo said. "Why not see if we could do it before then? That stemmed into friends jumping in and getting involved to make the process happen."</p><p>That led to businesses and community members making donations to help the Brayden House become a reality. The land for the house was donated, and volunteers helped as they could.</p><p>Josh Giambalvo and his wife, Ashley, live in the Brown House community where Brayden House is located.</p><p>"This is the vision we had, and we wanted to do it and just went for it," said Hudson. "We didn't win the lottery. It's just one of those things we wanted to do to inspire people. If people have a vision for the community, just do it."</p><p>Once finished, a host family from the community will move into part of the 4-bedroom, 1,700-square-foot home. Two of the bedrooms, which will have their own entrances, will serve as a temporary residence to two NICU families at a time.</p><p>Giambalvo said he's glad something with his son's name will go on and make an impact.</p><p>"It's really cool that [the Brayden House] has his name and that people will remember him," Giambalvo said. "But it's also to help people, and serve a need, a need that only people who have been in that situation see."</p><p> </p><p><i>Reach Lydia Seabol Avant at 205-722-0222 or lydia.seabolavant@tuscaloosanews.com.</i></p>